The Pill Club, a California-based company that delivers birth control to all 50 states and Washington, D.C., has raised $51 million in Series B funding. This brings The Pill Club’s total funding to $67 million. This round of funding was led by VMG Partners. GV (formerly known as Google Ventures), ACME Capital and existing investors Base10 and Shasta Ventures also participated in this round.
The Pill Club says that its mission is to place healthcare back into the hands of women through education, options, and access. This will help address the problem where 19 million women live in counties that lack reasonable access to a full range of contraceptives. The Pill Club offers an all-in-one solution that prescribes and delivers birth control around the country.
“Dependable, seamless and discreet aren’t words typically associated with obtaining birth control and contraceptives,” said The Pill Club founder and CEO Nick Chang in a statement. “When we launched in 2016, we realized that many new members didn’t have easy access to the prescriptions they needed. Our driving force has always been to put power back into the hands of women, and we’re thrilled to work with our investors as we continue enabling members to make important personal decisions through our easy-to-use service.”
The Pill Club also has its own pharmacy, which dispenses birth control. And it can currently prescribe medication in 35 states. And The Pill Club’s staff includes a medical team including doctors, nurses, and patient care coordinators who handle prescription fulfillment and guide members at every step. Plus it provides women who don’t live near a doctor with the ability to access the care that they need. Over 80% of The Pill Club’s patients have expressed concerns about impaired or limited opportunities due to financial, geographical, or familial constraints.
So The Pill Club essentially combines the privacy of telemedicine with the ownership of a pharmacy in order to ensure that women receive the right prescription from the comfort of their own homes. And The Pill Club currently offers more than 100 brands of the birth control pill, NuvaRing, emergency contraceptives, and female condoms.
Kara Roell of VMG Partners pointed out that “The Pill Club is dedicated to creating an informed, educated and supportive community for all women, and in turn, is creating a trusted brand in healthcare that resonates with a significant portion of the population.”
With this funding round, The Pill Club is going to focus on improving its technology to further automate operations and expand its prescription services. And the funding will also be utilized for expanding The Pill Club’s education services so members are well-versed on the most up-to-date contraceptive care and options. Plus the company is planning to grow its workforce by 50% over the next year.
Base10 co-founder and managing partner explained: “For us this wasn’t just an industry bet but also a founder bet. Nick is an outstanding leader, repeat health tech founder, incredibly passionate and has an ambitious vision to automate and dramatically improve women’s healthcare and increase access. We are proud to be an investor and looking forward to watching the platform continue to scale.”
After members create an account on The Pill Club and share where their existing prescription is located or upload an image of their prescription, The Pill Club pharmacists starts handling the rest. If a user is located in a state where The Pill Club prescribers, members can indicate that they need a new prescription written up when signing up. Delivery of the prescription is 100% free and the Pill Club will text a tracking link whenever it is filled and shipped. Plus refills are automatic, which eliminates the risk of delays every month. In terms insurance, The Pill Club accepts all major major prescription plans such as Medi-Cal, Family PACT, and Medicaid in certain states.
